Young salmon spend the first years of their lives in our rivers up until the time when the 10-15 cm long smolt make their way to the ocean. 

We have known for many years that the winter creates a bottleneck for the young salmon. This can be investigated by studying the population both before and after the winter, and extensive studies of this type have been carried out in the past.

But what do these small fish do during the winter, often living under thick layers of ice and snow?

As part of a project conducted over a five-year period, SINTEF has together with its partners studied the effects of winter on young salmon. Using recently developed technology we are studying the behaviour of the fish and the effects which physical winter conditions have on the salmon. Among other things we want to find out how various ice conditions affect these small fish, and how hydroelectric operations influence their survival and growth.